Horn speaker system

Abstract: A horn speaker system includes a dome-shaped diaphragm, a coil bobbin, a phase equalizer, and a magnetic circuit. The coil bobbin is integral with the dome-shaped diaphragm, and a voice coil is wound on the coil bobbin near a free end thereof. The magnetic circuit co-acts with the voice coil for producing forces to actuate the dome-shaped diaphragm. The magnetic circuit includes a cylindrical magnet, a first annular yoke attracted to one end of the cylindrical magnet and having a central opening, a plate cooperating with the first yoke in defining a gap in which the coil bobbin is inserted, and a second yoke attracted to an opposite end of the magnet. The magnet, the first yoke, the first plate, and the second yoke jointly make up a closed magnetic circuit. The phase equalizer serves to keep sounds outputted from the dome-shaped diaphragm in phase. The phase equalizer is mounted on the first yoke and has a plurality of slits defined therein. The magnet, the first yoke, the phase equalizer, and the dome-shaped diaphragm are stacked coaxially with each other.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a horn speaker system, and more particularly to a horn speaker system having a dome-shaped diaphragm. Horn speaker systems primarily for reproducing sounds in a high-frequency range have a dome-shaped diaphragm. The sounds produced by the dome-shaped diaphragm are collected by a phase equalizer and then introduced into a horn, from which the sounds are radiated into an exterior space. The horn speaker system is unable to achieve designed frequency characteristics unless the magnetic circuit for actuating the diaphragm is positioned accurately with respect to the diaphragm. Therefore, the components of the magnetic circuit, including a magnet, are assembled precisely with jigs. In particular, it has been customary to define a gap in which a voice coil is to be disposed, precisely with a jig called "gap gage" because the width of the gap is very small. However, it has been tedious and time-consuming to produce such a gap precisely with the gap gage. Some of the components of the magnetic circuit, e.g., the magnet, are difficult to fasten with screws due to their structural limitations. Those components are usually fixed in place by an adhesive. One problem with the use of adhesive is that the adhesive applied to bond the components tends to block the flow of magnetic fluxes in the magnetic circuit, resulting in a reduction in the magnetic efficiency and hence a degradation of the speaker characteristics. It is important that the diaphragm of a horn speaker system be reduced in weight for improved speaker performance, e.g., the quality of reproduced sounds, the energy conversion efficiency, etc. It is also desired that the horn speaker systems be capable of reproducing sounds with as flat a frequency characteristic curve in a wide frequency range. One form of diaphragm for use in a horn speaker system is integrally formed with an edge and comprises a metal sheet. In order to maintain a degree of durability and rigidity required by the edge, the thickness of the metal sheet is greater than that of a diaphragm which is separate from an edge. Therefore, the metal sheet is relatively heavy, with the result that the horn speaker system has poor frequency characteristics and response characteristics. Phase equalizers for use in horn speaker systems can not keep accurate phase matching unless properly shaped. In the absence of accurate phase matching, sounds reproduced by the horn speaker system may be unclear or may not have a flat frequency characteristic curve. It has been tedious and time-consuming to design a phase equalizer for desired good frequency characteristics. US-4 525 604, on which the preamble of claim 1 is based, discloses a horn loudspeaker with a convex diaphragm in which the throat of the horn speaker is formed by an assembly including the diaphragm, a cover plate for the diaphragm, a tapered plug, and a base, the plug and cover forming linear channels of equal length confronting different portions of the convex dome of the diaphragm. According to the present invention, there is provided a horn speaker system which includes a dome-shaped diaphragm, a coil bobbin, a voice coil, an edge, and a magnetic circuit. The coil bobbin is integral with the dome-shaped diaphragm, and the voice coil is wound around the coil bobbin. The edge is attached to the dome-shaped diaphragm. The magnetic circuit coacts with the voice coil for producing forces to actuate the dome-shaped diaphragm. The dome-shaped diaphragm is made of a material having a thickness which is at most 70 % of a thickness equivalent in mechanical strength to a thickness of a material of the edge. As described above, the dome-shaped diaphragm is made of a material having a thickness which is at most 70 % of a thickness equivalent in mechanical strength to a thickness of a material of the edge. The dome-shaped diaphragm and the edge may be made of optimum materials and have suitable thicknesses selected such that the overall weight of a movable assembly composed of the diaphragm and the edge may be reduced. FIGURE 1 is a cross-sectional view of a horn speaker system according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIGURE 2 is an exploded perspective view of the horn speaker system; FIGURE 3 is an exploded perspective view of a diaphragm and an edge of the horn speaker system; FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view of the diaphragm; FIGURE 5 is a diagram showing frequency characteristics of the horn speaker system with the diaphragm according to the embodiment and a horn speaker system with a comparative diaphragm; FIGURE 6 is a diagram showing frequency characteristics of the horn speaker system with the slit diaphragm according to the embodiment and a horn speaker system with comparative diaphragm which is not slit; FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional view of a phase equalizer of the horn speaker system; FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the phase equalizer; FIGURE 9 is a plan view of the phase equalizer; FIGURE 10 is cross-sectional view taken along line X - X of FIGURE 9; FIGURE 11 is a diagram showing the cross-sectional areas of slits in the phase equalizer as they vary depending on the distance from the inlet ends of the slits; FIGURES 12A through 12D are diagrams showing the frequency characteristics of acoustic impedances of the slits of the phase equalizer; FIGURE 13 is a diagram showing the cross-sectional areas of slits in a comparative phase equalizer as they vary depending on the distance from the inlet ends of the slits; and FIGURES 14A through 14D are diagrams showing the frequency characteristics of acoustic impedances of the slits of the comparative phase equalizer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A horn speaker system according to an embodiment of the present invention is designed to reproduce sounds in a frequency range higher than 500 Hz, for example. As shown in FIGURE 1, the horn speaker system has a dome-shaped diaphragm 10 integral with a tubular coil bobbin 11 disposed on an outer circumferential portion of a dome-shaped member. A voice coil 12 is wound on the coil bobbin 11. As shown in FIGURE 2, the coil bobbin 11 has a plurality of circumferentially spaced slits 11a defined in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the voice coil 12 is wound, i.e., in a direction in which the diaphragm 10 vibrates. An annular edge 13 is joined to the outer circumferential portion of the diaphragm 10. The edge 13 is sandwiched between a plate 21 and an annular holder 24 disposed on an upper surface of the plate 21, so that the diaphragm 10 is supported by the plate 21. Spacers 22, 23 are disposed between the plate 21 and the holder 24 for adjusting the height of the diaphragm 10. The holder 24 is fastened to the plate 21 by downwardly threaded screws 25a, thus fixing the edge 13 to the speaker unit. A guide ring 26 is fixed to a lower surface of the plate 21 by screws 25b which are upwardly threaded toward the screws 25a. The guide ring 26 has a step 26a which is fitted with a step 21a of the plate 21. Therefore, the guide ring 26 is automatically positioned with respect to the plate 21 once the plate 21 is positioned. The horn speaker system has a phase equalizer 30 disposed complementarily in shape to the dome-shaped diaphragm 10. The phase equalizer 30, which is formed as an aluminum die casting, serves to collect sounds produced upon vibration of the diaphragm 10 in phase with each other, and radiate the collected sounds. The phase equalizer 30 has four concentric annular slits 31, 32, 33, 34 for collecting the sounds from the diaphragm 10. The phase equalizer 30 will be described in detail later on. A tubular pole piece 27 is attached to the phase equalizer 30 remotely from the diaphragm 10, i.e., to a lower side of the phase equalizer 30 as viewed in FIGURE 1. The pole piece 27 has an outer circumferential surface 27a which is of the same diameter as the diameter of an inner circumferential surface 26b of the guide ring 26. The pole piece 27 is installed in place with the outer circumferential surface 27a and the inner circumferential surface 26b being held in contact with each other. Therefore, the pole piece 27 is automatically positioned with respect to the guide ring 26 once the guide ring 26 is positioned. The pole piece 27 has a central through hole 27b for connection of a throat 29 (described later on) to the pole piece 27. The pole piece 27, the plate 21, and other members jointly make up a magnetic circuit of the horn speaker system. Both the pole piece 27 and the plate 21 are made of a magnetic material. The pole piece 27 has a recess 27c defined in a surface thereof which faces the phase equalizer 30, the recess 27c receiving a ridge 35 of the phase equalizer 30. With the ridge 35 fitted in the recess 27c, the phase equalizer 30 is placed over the pole piece 27 and slightly floats off the pole piece 27, defining a slit 36 between the pole piece 27 and the phase equalizer 30. An annular or cylindrical magnet 28 is disposed on one side of the pole piece 27 remote from the phase equalizer 30, i.e., on a lower side of the pole piece 27 as viewed in FIGURE 1. The magnet 28 has a central through hole 28a for connection of the throat 29 thereto. The central through hole 28a is slightly larger in diameter than the central through hole 27b in the pole piece 27. The throat 29 which is of a tubular shape is disposed in the central through hole 28a in the magnet 28 and the central through hole 27b in the pole piece 27. The throat 29 serves to transmit sounds outputted from the phase equalizer 30 to a horn (not shown) connected to the throat 29, and has a through hole 29a for passing the sounds therethrough. The through hole 29a is progressively greater in diameter in a direction away from its end near the phase equalizer 30. The throat 29 has an outer circumferential surface 29b fitted in the central through hole 28a in the magnet 28. The outer circumferential surface 29b has an end 29c having a slightly smaller diameter which is fitted in the central through hole 27b in the pole piece 27. Therefore, the throat 29 is positioned with respect to the central through hole 27b in the pole piece 27, and the magnet 28 is positioned with respect to the throat 29. The throat 29 is made of copper in the illustrated embodiment. The horn speaker system further includes a yoke 41 having a circular through hole 41a, and the outer circumferential surface 29b of the throat 29 is fitted in the circular through hole 41a. The yoke 41 is shaped to cover the outer circumferential surfaces of the guide ring 26, the pole piece 27, and the magnet 28. The yoke 41 has a plurality of threaded holes 41b defined therein for attachment of the non-illustrated horn. A back cover 42 is mounted on a surface of the plate 21 remote from the yoke 41, i.e., an upper surface of the plate 21 as viewed in FIGURE 1. Specifically, the back cover 42 is fastened by screws or the like to the yoke 41 through the plate 21. The pole piece 27 disposed within the voice coil 12 attached to the diaphragm 10, the magnet 28, the plate 21 disposed around the voice coil 12, and the yoke 41 which interconnects the magnet 28 and the plate 21 jointly make up the magnetic circuit of the horn speaker system. Specifically, the magnet 28, the pole piece 27, the phase equalizer 30, and the diaphragm 10 are stacked coaxially with each other. The magnetic circuit and the voice coil 12 coact with each other to produce magnetic forces to actuate the diaphragm 10. The diaphragm 10 is vibrated based on a drive signal supplied to the voice coil 12, enabling the horn speaker system to radiate sounds based on the drive signal. The diaphragm 10, the plate 21, the phase equalizer 30, the guide ring 26, the pole piece 27, the magnet 28, and the throat 29 are shown in exploded perspective in FIGURE. 2. As shown in FIGURE 2, the plate 21 and the guide ring 26 are fastened to each other by the screws 25b extending in screw holes 21b, 26d defined respectively therein. The pole piece 27 and the magnet 28 are magnetically attached to each other by the magnet 28. The yoke 41, which is omitted from illustration in FIGURE 2, and the magnet 28 are also magnetically tached to each other by the magnet 28. In FIGURE 2, no edge is shown as being attached to the diaphragm 10. The magnetic circuit of the horn speaker system can be assembled by successively fitting the components of the magnetic circuit as shown in FIGURE 2, and the components thus put together are positioned accurately with respect to each other. The groove, which serves as a gap of the horn speaker system, defined between the plate 21 and the pole piece 27 can accurately be defined without use of any gap gage or the like. Therefore, the horn speaker system with desired designed frequency characteristics can accurately and easily be assembled. The pole piece 27 and the yoke 41 disposed around the magnet 28 are attracted to and remain combined with the magnet 28 under strong magnetic forces produced by the magnet 28. Therefore, it is not necessary to employ any adhesive to secure these components to the magnet in assembling the magnetic circuit. Since no adhesive which would block the flow of magnetic fluxes exists in the magnetic circuit, no eddy current is produced in the magnetic circuit, and the frequency characteristics of the horn speaker system are improved. The diaphragm 10 will be described in detail below. As shown in FIGURE 3, the diaphragm 10 includes a dome 10a integrally formed with the coil bobbin 11 which is contiguous to the dome 10a. The dome 10a and the coil bobbin 11 are made of a sheet of titanium alloy which has a thickness of 20 µm. The voice coil 12 is bonded or otherwise secured to the coil bobbin 11 near and along its free edge. The edge 13 has a central through hole 13a defined therein which has substantially the same diameter as the outside diameter of the dome 10a. As shown in FIGURE 4, the peripheral edge of the central through hole 13a is bonded to the dome 10a by an adhesive 14. The edge 13 is made of a sheet of titanium alloy which has a thickness of 50 µm. Where the edge 13 is made of titanium alloy, the thickness of 50 µm is a minimum thickness to maintain a required degree of durability for the edge 13. As shown in FIGURE 3, the edge 13 has a plurality of circumferentially spaced stiffening ribs 13b positioned slightly radially outwardly from the through hole 13a for allowing the dome 10a to vibrate well. The diaphragm 10 thus constructed is of a reduced weight while maintaining its durability required of a vibrating system. Specifically, when the diaphragm 10 vibrates, forces commensurate with the degree of vibration are applied to the edge 13. Since, however, the edge 13 is composed of a relatively thick sheet of titanium alloy which has a thickness of 50 µm, the material of the edge 13 is prevented from being broken due to metal fatigue. Nevertheless, the diaphragm 10 and the edge 13 are relatively light because the dome 10a and the coil bobbin 11 are made of a sheet of titanium alloy having a thickness of 20 µm. If the dome 10a has an outside diameter of 100 mm, for example, then the diaphragm 10, the edge 13, and the adhesive 14 may have a total weight of about 2.4 g. If a dome and an edge were integrally formed to produce a comparative diaphragm of the same size, then in order to keep a required degree of edge durability, the dome and the edge would have to be made of a sheet of titanium alloy having a thickness of 50 µm, and would have a total weight of about 3.3 g. Since the weight of the diaphragm 10 and the edge 13 according to the present invention is about 0.9 g lighter than the comparative diaphragm combined with the edge, the frequency characteristics of the horn speaker system are improved accordingly. FIGURE 5 shows frequency characteristics F 1 of the horn speaker system which employs the diaphragm 10 and frequency characteristics F 2 of a horn speaker system which employs the comparative diaphragm referred to above. A study of the graph shown in FIGURE 5 indicates that the level of sounds reproduced by the diaphragm 10 is higher than the level of sounds reproduced by the comparative diaphragm in an almost entire frequency range, and the level-frequency curve of the diaphragm 10 is flat up to about 25 kHz, but level-frequency curve of the comparative diaphragm is flat up to only about 20 kHz. As a result, the horn speaker system with the diaphragm 10 has its frequency range extended up to about 25 kHz. In the above embodiment, both the dome 10a and the edge 13 are made of a titanium alloy. However, they may be made of an alloy of other metal such as aluminum or a combination of different alloys. For example, the dome 10a and the coil bobbin 10 may be made of a sheet of aluminum alloy having a thickness of 35 µm, whereas the edge 13 may be made of a sheet of titanium alloy having a thickness of 50 µm. According to such a modification, the diaphragm 10 and the edge 13 may have a weight of about 2.3 g if the dome 10a has an outside diameter of 100 mm. The thicknesses indicated above are illustrative only, and may be of other values. According to the invention, the thickness of the dome 10a and the coil bobbin 11 has however to be of 70 % or less of a thickness equivalent in mechanical strength to the thickness of the material of the edge 13, for improved frequency characteristics. Furthermore, in as much as the slits 11a are defined at given intervals in the coil bobbin 11 integral with the diaphragm 10, the diaphragm 10 is allowed to vibrate well to give the horn speak system good frequency characteristics. More specifically, when the voice coil 12 is vibrated by the diaphragm 10, the slits 11a defined at given intervals in the coil bobbin 11 serve to prevent an eddy current from being developed in the metal coil bobbin 11. The slits 11a are also effective to reduce the mechanical Q of the dome 10a. Consequently, the horn speaker system has good frequency characteristics which are not affected by eddy currents and has less peaks at high frequencies. FIG. 6 shows frequency characteristics f 1 of the horn speaker system which employs the diaphragm 10 with the slits 11a defined in the coil bobbin 11 and frequency characteristics f 2 of a horn speaker system which employs a diaphragm with no slits defined in its coil bobbin. A review of the graph shown in FIGURE 6 shows that the level of the frequency characteristics f 1 of the horn speaker system with the slit diaphragm 10 is higher than the level of the frequency characteristics f 2 of the horn speaker system with the non-slit diaphragm in a low frequency range lower than 1 kHz, and the response-frequency curve of the horn speaker system with the slit diaphragm 10 is flatter than the response-frequency curve of the horn speaker system with the non-slit diaphragm in a high frequency range higher than 10 kHz. The phase equalizer 30 will be described in detail below with reference to FIGURES 7 through 10. The phase equalizer 30 is positioned closely against the dome-shaped diaphragm 10. As shown in FIGURE 7, the phase equalizer 30 has a partly spherical surface held closely against and shaped complementarily to the dome-shaped diaphragm 10. As shown in FIGURES 7 and 8, the phase equalizer 30 is of a conical shape with the partly spherical surface at its bottom. The slits 31, 32, 33, 34 are defined concentrically in the partly spherical surface which is held closely against the dome-shaped diaphragm 10. As shown in FIGURE 9, the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 are positioned successively radially outwardly from the center in the order named. The slits 31, 32, 33, 34 extend through the phase equalizer 30 to a surface thereof remote from the partly spherical surface. In the surface of the phase equalizer 30 remote from the partly spherical surface thereof, the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 are positioned concentrically in a successive pattern. The slits 31, 32, 33, 34 have respective cross-sectional areas across a partly spherical surface concentric with the partly spherical surface held closely against the dome-shaped diaphragm 10. The cross-sectional areas of the respective slits 31, 32, 33, 34 progressively increase linearly in a direction away from the diaphragm 10. Specifically, the cross-sectional areas of the respective slits 31, 32, 33, 34 progressively increase linearly as they move from respective inlets 31a, 32a, 33a, 34a thereof (see FIGURE 7) close to the diaphragm 10 toward respective inlets 31a, 32a, 33a, 34a thereof (see FIGURE 7) remote from the diaphragm 10. These cross-sectional areas are expressed by the following equation (1): S = S 0 + ax where S is a cross-sectional area across a partly spherical surface, S 0 is a cross-sectional area at the inlets 31a, 32a, 33a, 34a, "a" is a constant value for determining the rate of increase of the cross-sectional area, and "x" is the distance from the inlets. In this embodiment, the value "a" for determining the rate of increase of the cross-sectional area is the same for the slits 31, 32, 33, 34. The cross-sectional areas of the respective slits 31, 32, 33, 34 as they vary depending on the distance from the inlets 31a, 32a, 33a, 34a are shown in FIGURE 11. As shown in FIGURE 11, the cross-sectional areas of the respective slits 31, 32, 33, 34 are progressively greater in the order named. The rate of increase of the cross-sectional area remains substantially constant for all the slits 31, 32, 33, 34, and their cross-sectional areas increase linearly. Therefore, the sum of the cross-sectional areas of all the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 also increases linearly. The slits 31, 32, 33, 34 of the phase equalizer 30 have respective acoustic impedances which are free from resonance. More specifically, FIGURES 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D illustrate the acoustic impedances, respectively, of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34. In each of FIGURES 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, the solid-line curve represents an acoustic resistance, and the broken-line curve represents an acoustic reactance. As shown in FIGURE 12A, the acoustic impedance of even the innermost slit 31 is relatively low. A comparative phase equalizer will be discussed below. As shown in FIGURE 13, the comparative phase equalizer has a plurality of successive concentric slits S 1 , S 2 , S 3 , S 4 (the slits Si being the innermost) which have respective cross-sectional areas across a partly spherical surface. The cross-sectional areas of the respective slits S 1 , S 2 , S 3 , S 4 vary in a curved pattern, and decrease in the vicinity of outlets thereof. The sum of the cross-sectional areas of the slits S 1 , S 2 , S 3 , S 4 is indicated by S 0 in FIGURE 13. The slits S 1 , S 2 , S 3 , S 4 of the comparative phase equalizer have respective acoustic impedances as shown in FIGURES 14A, 14B, 14C, 14D. In each of FIGURES 14A, 14B, 14C, 14D, the solid-line curve represents an acoustic resistance, and the broken-line curve represents an acoustic reactance. As shown in FIGURE 14A, the acoustic impedance of the innermost slit S 1 exhibits sharp resonance. As shown in FIGURE 10, the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 in the phase equalizer 30 are partly closed, so that the phase equalizer 30 is made of interconnected members to guard against separation due to the slits 31, 32, 33, 34. The phase equalizer 30 in the horn speaker system is effective in reducing resonance of acoustic impedances to a level lower than the conventional phase equalizer, and does not make the reproduced sounds indistinct for thereby allowing the horn speaker system to reproduce clear sounds with good characteristics. Since the shapes of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 may be determined according to the above equation (1), the phase equalizer 30 can be designed and manufactured based on the simple equation for good characteristics. In the illustrated embodiment, as shown in FIGURE 1, the slit 36 is defined between the phase equalizer 30 and the pole piece 27. The slit 36 has a constant width and has its cross-sectional area not increasing linearly for good reproduction characteristics. More specifically, the outermost slit 36 picks up resonant sounds produced when the coil bobbin 11 of the diaphragm 10 is vibrated. Since the width of the slit 36 is constant, the resonant sounds thus produced are not transmitted through the slit 36. Accordingly, the horn speaker system has good characteristics against resonant sounds. In the above embodiment, the cross-sectional areas of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 increase linearly and the constant value "a" for determining the rate of increase of the cross-sectional areas of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 is the same for the slits 31, 32, 33, 34. However, the cross-sectional areas of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 may increase in a pattern rather than the linear pattern, and the rates of increase of the cross-sectional areas of the slits 31, 32, 33, 34 may differ from each other. That is, the cross-sectional areas may be expressed by the following equation (2): S = S 0 × exp (aix) where "ai" is a rate of increase of the cross-sectional area which is different between the slits. According to this equation, the cross-sectional area of each slit increases exponentially. Alternatively, the cross-sectional areas may be expressed by the following equation (3): S = f(x), f' (x) > 0 The equation (3) indicates that the cross-sectional area S progressively increases as a function of the distance "x" along the slit. The rate of increase of the cross-sectional area may be defined as indicated by the equation (3). The dome-shaped metal diaphragm 10 is heated when it vibrates. The heat produced by the vibrating diaphragm 10 is transferred to the phase equalizer 30 which is in the form of an aluminum die casting having a relatively high thermal conductivity. The throat 29 for guiding sounds outputted from the phase equalizer 30 is made of copper which also has a relatively high thermal conductivity. Therefore, the heat transferred to the phase equalizer 30 is transferred to the throat 29 and then the horn. The heat is radiated together with the reproduced sounds into the exterior space. Thus, the heat generated by the diaphragm 10 is efficiently dissipated from the horn speaker system. The horn speaker system is effectively prevented from being damaged or broken due to the heat produced by the diaphragm 10. While the phase equalizer 30 comprises an aluminum die casting and the throat 29 is made of copper in the illustrated embodiment, they may be made of other different metals each having a relatively high thermal conductivity. According to the above embodiment, the horn speaker system is assembled successively from the plate 21. However, the horn speaker system may be assembled by fitting the throat 29 in the yoke 41, fitting the magnet 28 over the throat 29, and installing the pole piece 27 and the phase equalizer 30 on the magnet 28. The dome 10a, the coil bobbin 11, and the edge 13 may be made of any of various other materials other than a titanium alloy or an aluminum alloy. For example, the edge 13 may be made of a highly resilient material such as highly resilient biocellulose produced by culturing a bacterium, or carbon fibers. In the case where the edge 13 is made of highly resilient biocellulose or carbon fibers, the diaphragm 10 combined with the edge 13 may be further reduced in weight for better characteristics. For further details of bacterial cellulose, reference should be made to U. S. patent No. 4,742,164, for example. In the illustrated embodiment, the slit 36 defined between the phase equalizer 30 and the pole piece 27 is of a constant width. However, the outermost slit 34 defined in the phase equalizer 30 may be of a constant width, or the slit 36 may be of a cross-sectional area which varies according to the equation (1), for example. In the illustrated embodiment, both the phase equalizer 30 and the throat 29 are made of metals each having a relatively high thermal conductivity. However, only the phase equalizer 30 which is positioned closely to the diaphragm 10 may be made of a metal having a relatively high thermal conductivity. Such a modification is also effective in radiating produced heat. Having described preferred embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments and that various changes and modifications could be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims: A horn speaker system comprising: a dome-shaped diaphragm (10); a coil bobbin (11) integral with said dome-shaped diaphragm (10); a voice coil (12) wound around said coil bobbin (11); an edge (13) attached to said dome-shaped diaphragm (10); and a magnetic circuit co-acting with said voice coil (12) for producing forces to actuate said dome-shaped diaphragm (10); and characterised in that said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) is made of a material having a thickness which is at most 70% of a thickness equivalent in mechanical strength to a thickness of a material of said edge (13). A horn speaker system according to claim 1, wherein said edge (13) is made of a material selected from the group consisting of titanium, bacterial cellulose produced by culturing a bacterium, and carbon fibers. A horn speaker system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) and said coil bobbin (11) are made of metal, said coil bobbin (11) having a plurality of spaced slits defined in a direction normal to a direction in which said voice coil (12) is wound around said coil bobbin (11). A horn speaker system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, further comprising a phase equalizer (30) for keeping sounds outputted from said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) in phase, said phase equalizer (30) being mounted on said magnetic circuit. A horn speaker system according to claim 4, wherein said phase equalizer (30) has a partly spherical surface facing said dome-shaped diaphragm and a plurality of concentric slits (31, 32, 33, 34) defined therethrough and extending from said partly spherical surface toward a surface thereof opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome-shaped diaphragm, the cross-sectional area across a partly spherical surface concentric with said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm of at least one of said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) progressively increasing in a direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 5, wherein said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) include an outermost slit having a cross-sectional area which is constant in the direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 5 or 6, further comprising a tubular throat (29) disposed closely to said surface of the phase equalizer (30) opposite to the partly spherical surface thereof, said throat (29) having an inside diameter progressively greater in a direction in which sounds output from said phase equalizer (30) are radiated, said throat (29) having an end mounted on said magnetic circuit in communication with the slits (31, 32, 33, 34) of said phase equalizer. A horn speaker system according to claim 7, wherein said throat (29) is made of a material having a relatively high thermal conductivity. A horn speaker system according to claim 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, wherein said phase equalizer (30) is made of a material having a relatively high thermal conductivity. A horn speaker system according to claim 1, wherein said magnetic circuit includes a cylindrical magnet (28), a pole piece (27) attracted to one end of said cylindrical magnet (28) and having a central opening, said pole piece (27) defining a gap in which said coil bobbin (11) is inserted; and said horn speaker system further comprises a phase equalizer (30) for keeping sounds output from said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) in phase, said phase equalizer (30) being positioned on one side of said dome-shaped diaphragm (10), said phase equalizer (30) being mounted on said pole piece (27); wherein said cylindrical magnet (28), said pole piece (27), said phase equalizer (30), and said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) are stacked coaxially on each other. A horn speaker system according to claim 10, wherein said magnetic circuit further includes a plate (21) cooperating with said pole piece (27) in defining said gap, and a yoke (41) attracted to an opposite end of said cylindrical magnet (28), and wherein said cylindrical magnet (28), said pole piece (27), said plate (21), and said yoke (41) jointly make up a closed magnetic circuit. A horn speaker system according to claim 11, wherein said edge (13) is attached to said plate (21). A horn speaker system according to claim 10, 11 and 12, further comprising a tubular throat (29) disposed closely to an output end of said phase equalizer (30) and positioned in an opening of said cylindrical magnet (28), said throat (29) having an end positioned in an opening defined in said pole piece (27). A horn speaker system according to claim 13, wherein said throat (29) is made of a nonmagnetic material having a relatively high thermal conductivity, said throat (29) having an inside diameter progressively greater in a direction from an end thereof positioned in said opening defined in said pole piece (27) toward an opposite end of said cylindrical magnet (28). A horn speaker system according to claim 1, wherein said coil bobbin (11) has a portion on which said voice coil (12) is wound and which is inserted in said magnetic circuit and said horn speaker system further comprises a phase equalizer (30) for keeping sounds outputted from said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) in phase, said phase equalizer (30) being positioned on one side of said dome-shaped diaphragm (10), said phase equalizer (30) having a partly spherical surface facing said dome-shaped diaphragm and a plurality of concentric slits (31, 32, 33, 34) defined therethrough and extending from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward a surface thereof opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm, the cross-sectional area across a partly spherical surface concentric with said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm of at least one of said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) progressively increasing in a direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 15, wherein said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) include an outermost slit having a cross-sectional area which is constant in the direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 16, wherein said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) except said outermost slit have respective cross-sectional areas which increase linearly in the direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 15, wherein said edge is fixed at an end opposite to the end attached to said dome shaped diaphragm and wherein, said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) of said phase equaliser (30) include a slit having an open end facing said edge at said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm, said slit having a cross-sectional area which is constant in the direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to claim 18, wherein said slits (31, 32, 33, 34) except said last-mentioned slit have respective cross-sectional areas which increase linearly in the direction from said partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm toward said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm. A horn speaker system according to any one of claims 15 to 19, wherein said phase equalizer (30) is mounted on said magnetic circuit at said surface opposite to the partly spherical surface facing said dome shaped diaphragm, said magnetic circuit having an opening communicating with said slits (31, 32, 33, 34), and wherein said magnetic circuit, said phase equalizer (30), and said dome-shaped diaphragm (10) are stacked coaxially on each other.

Inventors: ENDO KATSUYA, FUKE NOBUO, KAMATANI YOSHITERU, ENDO, KATSUYA, FUKE, NOBUO, KAMATANI, YOSHITERU, ENDO, KATSUYA, C/O SONY CORPORATION, FUKE, NOBUO, C/O SONY CORPORATION, KAMATANI, YOSHITERU, C/O SONY CORPORATION
Applicants: SONY CORP, SONY CORPORATION
Application year: 1994
Main classification: H04R9
IPC codes: H04R1, H04R9, H04R7